DONALD GILLILAND, The Patriot-News, 2010A Marcellus Shale well sits high on a bluff over the Susquehanna River in Wyoming County. Drillers are not leaving the state anytime soon.

If we were betting people, we would wager that when the Pennsylvania Legislature returns to Harrisburg this week, it will once again fail to pass a meaningful Marcellus Shale bill.

We’ve seen the scenario for the last three years: Lawmakers make promising speeches, issue news releases and “debate.” They get close to doing something about a severance tax or impact fee and adding a few more common-sense drilling regulations.

And then it all falls apart.

They go home or go off to campaign as if that is more important than getting something done on this key issue for Pennsylvania.

Never mind that every other major gas-drilling state in America has a severance tax, even conservative states such as Texas.

Never mind that two-thirds of Pennsylvania voters want a tax, including a vast majority of Republicans.

Never mind that currently drillers put up a mere $2,500 bond per well, so if something goes wrong taxpayers will be on the line to pay — just like in the coal-mining days, which we are still paying for.

Never mind that the state struggled to close a $4 billion budget deficit last year and is running a half-billion behind in revenue collections this year.

Never mind that even Kathryn Klaber, president of the Marcellus Shale Coalition, said a few days ago to this editorial board that her members “support a competitive, reasonable impact fee.”

Some lawmakers continually ignore the facts and fail to take action to ensure this industry flourishes — safely.

The worst are those elected officials who continue to claim that the Marcellus Shale drilling industry is fledgling and in danger of fleeing the state’s borders.

Let’s get this straight: The Department of Environmental Protection has issued more than 9,700 permits in the Marcellus Shale. It is one of the largest shale gas plays in the world, and the only one near the energy-needy Eastern Seaboard.

Most major companies are here and describe this “play” to their investors as a huge asset. Range Resources says: “The Marcellus offers the best economics of any large-scale, repeatable play in the country.”

In fact, there isn’t just one shale gas play in Pennsylvania, there are four potential layers of natural gas to tap.

We don’t need to bend over backward to lure the industry here or to keep it here. Drillers are here. Major companies are here.

And they are highly motivated to stay put based on what’s in the ground and what’s happening in neighboring states.

New York still has a moratorium on drilling. West Virginia has over a 5.5 percent tax. All Pennsylvania needs to do is create a slightly friendlier environment for drillers and they will continue to come and invest in the commonwealth.

But that doesn’t mean we should give away our precious resources for the lowest price in America and ignore the potentially harmful environmental impacts. It is well past time to enact a severance tax. If Republicans want to call it an “impact fee,” so be it. But it must be a fee that is implemented statewide and is not the lowest in the country.

Those who have followed this debate for years know that two years ago the Marcellus Shale Coalition was arguing for a 1.5 percent tax (rising to 5 percent in later years). It seemed minuscule at the time. Now it’s on the high end of many proposals. That’s not right.

Every lawmaker is well aware that Pennsylvania voters are becoming restless about this issue — and it could be reflected at the ballot box.

It’s not just time to get something done. It’s time to get it done right.